Biggest issue I have found with bending the rods is that the actuator doesn't like the alignment however if there is no freeplay it would work fine like with yours Dragon. Thanks for the pics as well!
My actuators came with slightly thicker rods but I'll try the same.
Only question is that does the door trim allow for good enough room for the actuator and its movement. Guessing so if you've had no issues.
With the gold bracket strip, do you have it only secured on one side as I can only see the actuator is attached to it but not the bracket to the door.